Katherine ("Kathy") M. Helmick, MS, CRNP, ANP-BC, CNRN
Acting Director
Ms. Helmick is the deputy director for DVBIC. She brings considerable clinical, educational and research experience in the field of neuroscience to include more than 100 regional, national and international presentations and more than 15 peer-reviewed publications.
Ms. Helmick has served in a variety of leadership, advisory and operational roles, including deputy director for the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury; deputy director for the Clinical and Educational Affairs Office for DVBIC; manager of the Office of Clinical Standards at DVBIC; neurological surgery nurse practitioner at Hodes Neurosurgery in Louisville, Ky.; nurse practitioner/clinical care coordinator at the University of Louisville Hospital; and clinical research coordinator in the Division of Neurosurgery at the Medical College of Virginia Hospitals.
Ms. Helmick holds both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in nursing from Virginia Commonwealth University, as well as a Bachelor of Science in family and child development from Virginia Tech University. She has earned the following certifications: Adult Nurse Practitioner (ANP) through the American Nurses Credentialing Center and Neuroscience Registered Nurse (CNRN) through the American Board of Neuroscience Nursing.
A. Tamara Crowder, PhD
Chief of Staff
Dr. Crowder assumed her current position as Chief of Staff for the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center in March 2009. She is responsible for day-to-day management and execution of all DVBIC programs within the DVBIC network to include many U.S. Army, Navy, Marine and Air Force installations throughout the U.S., at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany and two civilian TBI treatment facilities.
Dr. Crowder has held a variety of military scientific research and administration management positions throughout her career to include: Research Associate at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, the National Institutes of Health and subject matter expert at military scientific peer and programmatic reviews.
Prior to her current assignment, Dr. Crowder served as the Scientific Officer for the Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury and Deployment Related Medical Research Programs at the Medical Research and Materiel Command’s Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program. A native of Virginia, Dr. Crowder earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Biological Sciences at the University of Maryland, a Masters’ Degree in Microbiology and a Doctoral Degree in Neuroscience from the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences.